Looks Like we May See a BP Settlement

BP Settlement: Looks like BP may be ready to settle

BP Settlement News: As the February 27th trial against BP looms in the near future, BP Settlement rumors are flowing into the news. BP is looking to settle and the BP settlement amount is looking to be between 20-25 billion. This is on top of the $20 billion dollars that was used to set up the Gulf Coast Claims Facility to pay BP Claims. BP was responsible for the April 20th, 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil-rig explosion that killed 11 men and dumped enormous amounts of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

If there is no BP Settlement, Judge Barbier will be hearing the case and without a jury to help, BP’s fate lies on his shoulders. This news comes after the new charges that claimants now look at, because Barbier decided that every claimant should pay 6% out of their BP settlement check to be put in escrow for the attorneys spending time on the multi district litigation. This initially meant that even people who are not involved in the multi district litigation will be lining the pockets of attorneys who are not representing their cases. This has since changed. Only cases at the MDL will be charged the 6%. This has taken some pressure off Judge Barbier. With the new talk of a possible 20-25 billion dollar BP settlement, people may be seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. A BP Settlement could be settled out before the trial, but just because they are trying to settle out does not mean that people have to settle. This will be the first of many lawsuits BP will face in the future.

Will the BP Settlement Come in Before the Trial?

If the US government and BP do not reach a BP Settlement for BP Claims then BP should prepare for court.  The trial will take place in court room C268 in New Orleans, and Judge Barbier will make the decision that will affect BP’s entire future. The court room can hold around 200 people, and on February 27th it will be busting at the seams. The multi-district litigation will include the majority of claims against BP, Haliburton and Transocean. It will also include state governments, individuals and businesses who show a loss as a result of the spill, and claims between the three companies on trial. Transocean was the owner and operator of the Deepwater Horizon rig, and Haliburton was the contractor that provided the cement that was supposed to seal the well. There are 533 separate cases rolled into one big trial, and there will be more cases added before the trial date. Lawyers are still taking cases and boosting their advertisements to get as many cases in this trial as possible. A commercial fisherman from Louisiana has put in a claim of $4 million from losses from the oil spill. The GCCF did what they have done for many claims and offered out only $25,000 to George Barisich. He has refused to settle and is one of the many cases that has joined the multi-district litigation hoping to collect from the BP Settlement. Many BP Claims have gone unpaid.  A BP Settlement is in BP’s best interest.

With over five hundred cases the court documents add up to more than 72 million pages. There are 303 video depositions and over 7700 exhibits in evidence. Ninety firms have worked over 230,000 hours on this case, and these are just the private sector attorneys. The Pre trial hearings are getting very interesting. The U.S .claims that BP, Transocean and Anadarko Petroleum are all accountable under the Clean Water Act. This would penalize them anywhere from 1100 per barrel split to 4300 if the spill was a result of gross negligence or willful misconduct. The US government does not feel they will have any problem proving willful misconduct from Transocean at the least. As of right now BP and Anadarko are pointing fingers at Transocean and in turn, Transocean is pointing the finger right back. If the judge awards the maximum amount, these penalties could reach 20 billion alone.  BP would be better off to go ahead and agree to a BP Settlement.  Regardless of the verdicts, there will be appeals and BP will not be out of the woods for a long time to come.

Morgan Stanley believes there is anywhere from a 70 to 80 percent chance of a BP Settlement, and they will pay between 20-25 billion dollars to compensate all federal claims including possible criminal penalties.  This leaves a good chance that we will see a BP Settlement, and people will start getting their compensation.  BP, Transocean, Haliburton, Ken Feinberg, and the GCCF are under severe scrutiny in regards to negligence that caused the oil spill, and negligence and misconduct in paying claims out to the people who suffered from the BP Oil spill. The GCCF is still being audited, and criminal charges are a great possibility. Criminal charges have not been filed as of yet but the investigations into criminal negligence will likely cause a BP Settlement as quickly as possible. The government and BP both are willing to reach an agreement on the BP Settlement, its just a numbers game at this time. BP is going to have to offer a fair BP Settlement in order for people to be happy. If they offer an unfair amount, people are going to continue to fight.

BP Settlement: GCCF Still Denying Claims

Just this week BP has denied the 11.8 million dollar claim from Gulfport. The city put a claim in for lost sales tax, over $1 million in property taxes and over $6 million in community damages. BP stated that Gulfport has not given adequate documentation of sales or property tax losses from the time of the Oil spill. BP has already tried to settle out for $76,000 with Gulfport, but the offer was rejected. The city is still hoping that the claim can be settled without having to go to court but does not understand how a bp claim was worth $76,000 and now it is not worth anything.

BP Settlement: What we can do for you

Do you qualify for a BP Settlement: Again it is important to remember that just because BP settles out does not mean you have to settle on the amount.  The BP Settlement between BP and the U.S. does not mean you have to settle for a less than you deserve.  BP and the GCCF have a history of giving low ball offers, and not paying people what they truly lost as a result of the oil spill. BP will have no choice but to settle out. Do not be the one who settled for less than what was deserved. We have BP claims consultants and attorneys who will help you get the compensation that is owed to you and will fight the GCCF, BP, and Ken Feinberg. We are not standing down, and are still fighting to help as many people as possible get their BP Settlement.